1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vehicle start notification control device that performs control to notify a vehicle start to the surrounding of a vehicle when the vehicle starts.
2. Description of the Related Arts
When a vehicle, such as a hybrid vehicle or an electrical vehicle, having an electric motor for vehicle driving mounted thereon starts, almost no driving sound is generated because of the quietness of the electric motor. Consequently, it is difficult for a pedestrian or the like, who is in the surrounding of the vehicle, to auditorily recognize a behavior related to a start of the vehicle.
Addressing such a problem, for example, Patent Literature 1 (JP. 2012-188071 A) discloses a technology related to a vehicular start warning device provided with warning means for warning a vehicle start to outside the vehicle. The vehicular start warning device according to Patent Literature 1 includes ignition status detecting means for detecting the status of an ignition switch and control means that warns by warning means when warning condition is satisfied after a change in the ignition status from ignition-off to ignition-on has been detected by the ignition status detecting means, deactivates the warning made by the warning means when preset deactivating condition is satisfied, and does not warn by the warning means until ignition-off is thereafter once detected by the ignition status detecting means even if the warning condition is satisfied.
By the vehicular start warning device according to Patent Literature 1, as vehicle start warning is performed only at the first start of a vehicle in one ignition cycle with an assumption that the vehicle starts from a parking state, it is possible to reduce generation of noises, omitting opportunities of start warning.
Incidentally, in general, a vehicle is often started, using a creep torque that becomes explicit by decreasing brake pedal effort in a state that a driver's foot is off the accelerator pedal. Accordingly, by a vehicular start warning device as disclosed by Patent Literature 1, start notification is performed, taking a timing (deactivation timing) when a driver has decreased a brake pedal effort in addition to a timing that the driver has depressed the accelerator pedal.
On the other hand, for a purpose, such as reducing the load of braking operation by a driver, some recent vehicles have a braking force holding function to hold braking force even if a brake applying operation by the driver is deactivated. For example, Patent Literature 2 (JP. 2012-162146 A) discloses a vehicular technology wherein when a shift lever is operated when a vehicle has stopped or when the vehicle is in a stop state: if the shift position is the forward position, braking force holding control is permitted only when the running direction has a rising slope and braking force holding control is otherwise prohibited; on the other hand, if the shift position is the backward position, braking force holding control is permitted only when the running direction has a descending slope and braking force holding control is otherwise prohibited; and if the shift position is the neutral position, execution of braking force holding control is prohibited regardless of a slope.
By the vehicle having a braking force holding function according to Patent Literature 2, the vehicle is inhibited from moving down by gravity at a hill start, and on the other hand, if the shift position is the neutral position, running down on a slope by arbitrary braking operation by a driver is allowed so that the driver does not have a strange feeling.